Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Saturday Selections

The weekend is here so we start with a group of football and basketball picks for you to use or mock later....

College Football
New Mexico Bowl: Wyoming d. Temple
Idaho Potato Bowl: Ohio d. Utah St.
New Orleans Bowl: LA-Lafayette d. San Diego St.

College Basketball
BYU d. (6) Baylor
Notre Dame d. (17) Indiana
(19) Illinois d. UNLV
(13) Florida d. (22) Texas A&M
Indiana St. d. (25) Vanderbilt
Kansas St. d. (23) Alabama

Nine picks to see how close I can be today, sports thoughts tonight.....

Monday, December 5, 2011

Monday Morning Thoughts

The weekend is over....let's look at what has happened.

- Quite a scare the Giants put into the Packers Sunday afternoon. Tie game late in the fourth quarter before Aaron Rodgers dug his team out to send Green Bay to 12-0. The Pack have 3 home games left in their last four remaining games. The road to 16-0 seems paved now.
- If this season couldn't get any worse for the Bears, it appeared to after Matt Forte went down in a terrible 10-3 loss to the Chiefs. Chicago has zero chance w/o Forte and Cutler in the lineup. Now a trip to Denver and Tebow is coming. The season is slipping away in the Windy City.
- Speaking of seasons slipping away, how about the Lions? A 5-0 start has slid all the way to 7-5. While Detroit put up a nice effort Sunday night in New Orleans, this team is going to need a major miracle now to make the playoffs especially with their final game on New Year's Day in Green Bay with the Packers likely looking to finish 16-0.
- As I bring up New Orleans, the college football rematch everyone really didn't want to see will happen when LSU takes on Alabama in the BCS Championshp Game. If anyone outside of the southeast going to care about this game unless you are an alum of either school? The SEC will win the national title for the sixth straight year and more power to them for it but it's time to move the trophy out of the south for at least a year.
- The rest of the college bowl schedule was released Sunday as well and one matchup I'm really looking forward to is the Fiesta Bowl between Stanford and Oklahoma St. Those two high-powered offenses should make for a great game in Glendale on Jan. 2.  Couple other games I'm looking forward to would be Houston/Penn St. in the TicketCity Bowl and Wisconsin/Oregon in the Rose Bowl.
- To finish the college thought train, it's a real shame Michigan St. gets stuck with the Outback Bowl against Georgia while their in-state counterparts get a BCS game against Virginia Tech. The Spartans were in the Big Ten Title Game, played Wisconsin tough while Michigan sat all day Saturday but what can you do?
- Baseball's Winter Meetings got off to a roaring start with the Marlins signing Jose Reyes. Great move to get fans into the new ballpark and now where will Hanley Ramirez play? You would have to figure he is moving to 3B but reports say he is not open to moving positions so stay tuned.
- Prediction-wise this weekend I went 8-6 with the NFL picks (Chargers d. Jaguars tonight for the last game) and Saturday's picks went 7-3 so an overall 15-9 weekend.....not terrible I guess.

That's all for now, look for more tonight....

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Saturday Evening Thoughts....

Thoughts on this Saturday night....

- So Houston didn't want that BCS bowl game after all I see. How can you lose at home in the biggest game of your school's history and the money you could have had if you win. Choke job supreme.
- The Houston loss gives TCU the opening they need to go back to a BCS game. Only team to beat Boise State this year and probably off to the Fiesta Bowl now. Well done Horned Frogs.
- It now looks 100% for that LSU-Alabama rematch for the national title after the Tigers win in the SEC Championship Game. LSU started slow but rolled Georgia in the second half. These are the top two teams by leaps and bounds, set the game up.
- Normally, early season college basketball isn't anything special but put Kentucky and North Carolina together and you got something. An amazing game that came down to the last second with these two long-time programs. I think we may be seeing them again together at the Final Four.
- Week 13 of the NFL season continues Sunday and after that awful performance from the Eagles Thursday, we should see some compelling things I figure. Saints may put up 50 on the Lions, same with the Patriots against the Colts.
- Baseball's winter meetings start Monday. Watch the fireworks with this, big trades will happen, big signings will occur but who to where? Only time will tell.

Enjoy the rest of your sports weekend.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Welcome in to the Manager's Hut

So today, a new feature will debut but more later....now a look at what is happening.

- So the BCS title game will be LSU-Alabama unless something beyond unreal happens. While I don't like rematches from the regular season, it's very obvious these are the two best teams. Let them go at it.
- So the Packers improved to 11-0 Thursday with their win over the Lions...no one beats this team in the regular season, could a 19-0 season be upcoming? Wouldn't be a long trip to the Super Bowl either for their fans.
- NBA finally has got their act together and came to an agreement. The fans were getting restless and they couldn't risk losing anymore games after Christmas. Going to be a very busy sports day for Chicago fans now with the Bulls followed by the Bears. Sounds like a perfect day for the Windy City.
- Some hockey news as the Washington Capitals fired Coach Bruce Boudreau...I discussed this a while back after his benching of Alex Ovechkin. Sounds like Ovechkin won that one.
- Sources say this morning Urban Meyer will take over at Ohio State. The Buckeye fans can't be happy with this past season so this move will please Columbus. Now if he can get the Big 10 (isn't it 12) back to national championship contention.
- It appears Tebow Tim (e) is here to stay in Denver after another Broncos win, this time in San Diego. Can this team actually make the playoffs? It's starting to look more and more like a real possibility.
- Monday Night Football tonight with the Giants in New Orleans to face the Saints. This won't be a low-scoring game to say the least as both teams have offenses that can go up and down the field. Thinking New Orleans gets this win 38-31.

Coming soon will be my daily commentary, working out some bugs with that but that is next. Until then, enjoy the day.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Deep Thoughts with....

As we prepare for Thanksgiving during this my last post until Monday, I give you some things to think about...

- Lions will beat the Packers Thursday. It has happened before to a 10-0 Packer team in Detroit for the holiday. History repeats itself.
- LSU wins in OT over Arkansas. The Tigers finish the regular season strong on their march to New Orleans...not a long march but a march.
- Auburn beats Alabama. Begin the BCS mess, who will play LSU in this scenario? Who knows...
- I encourage you to use the ESPN Playoff Machine, pick every game the rest of the season to figure out what the playoff matchups will be. Fun times.
- We got a new labor agreement in MLB. Hope you took notes, NBA.

Now I go to eat and watch football.....great thoughts coming Monday.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Injure, Injure

Sounds like another week of NFL injuries...if you were unlucky enough to have Fred Jackson, Adrian Peterson and Matt Hasselbeck all in your fantasy lineup, it was not your day. Peterson appears to be the most serious and as of this writing, the MRI was negative on his ankle. Jackson left with a leg injury while Hasselbeck departing with an elbow injury.

Jay Cutler broke his thumb on his throwing hand and reports say he will miss 6-8 weeks. This dooms the Bears and their chances to do much the rest of the season. While Chicago is 7-3 now, 9-7 seems very likely now with Caleb Hanie at the controls.

New BCS Standings are out and the SEC has the top 3 teams with LSU, Alabama and Arkansas in that order. You got LSU-Arkansas Friday afternoon to decide a WHOLE lot with this along with the Iron Bowl Saturday.

It's Thanksgiving week which means live sports on each day this week, starting Monday with the Maui Invitational. Enjoy this week, the more sports the better....don't forget family though.

Upset Weekend

It was a wild weekend to say the least in college football as the No. 2, 4 and 5-ranked teams in the BCS Standings all lost. Now the whole BCS is thrown for a loop and it is looking more and more likely than we are going to see a LSU-Alabama rematch. The first game was epic for defense but do we really need another matchup of that?

The real fun comes in if Arkansas beats LSU Friday afternoon. Then more chaos because the only undefeated team could potentially be Houston and we all know there is no way the BCS will put Houston in the title game......right? Don't the Cougars deserve a shot at this if there are the only undefeated team left? Otherwise, you are left with a champion with at least one loss on the year.

Go get me a 8-team playoff. The bowl season lasts long enough and has too many mediocre 6-6 teams in there. Let's play this out to next season with some dates....play the quarterfinals on Sat., Dec. 22 with the semifinals on New Year's Day and the title game on Monday, Jan. 7. Why can't this work? Saturday's top 5 losses show the need there is for one.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Monday Reflections

Here are my thoughts on the weekend gone by....

- What a shootout in San Diego with the Packers and Chargers. 83 points scored, Packers stay undefeated. I don't see anyone knocking them off anytime soon.
- Defense came to play Saturday night with LSU and Alabama. A 9-6 overtime affair won by the Tigers. Don't be shocked if those two head out with a rematch. I don't want that, give a new set of teams a chance like Oklahoma State or Stanford but who knows with the BCS.
- The NBA lockout appears to be coming down to a final showdown. This hasn't been pretty at all and keeps getting worse. I predict the season will be cancelled.
- One big NHL matchup this weekend was Vancouver going to Chicago to face the Blackhawks. The Canucks ended Chicago's season last year and Sunday night smacked around the Hawks again to the tune of 6-2. Hawks got some work to do.
- Jim Thome signed with the Phillies recently and finally Thome may get the World Series ring he richly deserves. He's a guy who signs Halloween candy for kids, he needs a ring.
- Finally a pick for Monday Night Football....Eagles d. Bears. I'm thinking Michael Vick runs through the Chicago defense with at least a touchdown and 80 yds rushing. Give me Philly 24-13.

Fantasy Player of the Day: San Diego WR Vincent Jackson
Jackson had seven catches for 141 yards and three touchdowns for the Chargers Sunday but it wasn't enough in San Diego's 45-38 loss.

Matchup to Watch: Bears at Eagles, 7:30 p.m. (CT), ESPN
A key NFC battle completed Week 9 of the NFL season. The winner will have a key tiebreaker on the other for playoff seedings or just making it at all.

This Date in History: Nov. 7, 1991
A day that no sports fan will forget as Magic Johnson announced he has HIV and retired from the Lakers. The shock is still there 20 years later.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Saturday Selections

It's the weekend so we will make this nice and easy, six picks for you for Saturday's college football games...

- (2) Alabama d. (1) LSU. The Crimson Tide are at home in what should be a great defensive battle. Give me Alabama 17-13.
- (10) South Carolina d. (8) Arkansas. No, this is not the SEC Pick 'Em Game I promise. I like the Gamecocks here on the road, 27-24.
- (3) Oklahoma St. d. (17) Kansas St. The high-flying Cowboys are flying high with 28 year old QB Brandon Weeden in the saddle and control their own destiny in going to the BCS Title Game. OK St. 37-20.
- (6) Oregon d. Washington. This sounds easy being one team is in the top 10 and the other isn't but this game will be closer than most people think. Ducks 31-28.
- Notre Dame d. Wake Forest. Here come the Irish on the road. They have played well after starting 0-2 and win this game 34-16.
- Iowa d. (13) Michigan. Here's your upset special. The Hawkeyes are coming off a bad loss to a bad Minnesota team and will be angry at home. Iowa 20-14.

Fantasy Player of the Day: USC QB Matt Barkley
Barkley threw a USC-record 6 TD passes Friday night as the Trojans defeated Colorado 42-17 to help USC improve to 7-2 on the season

Matchup to Watch: LSU at Alabama, 7 p.m. (CT), CBS
You must be under a rock if you don't know what this game means. Order the pizza early and get your drinks. Settle in and enjoy.

This Date in Sports History: Nov. 5, 1971
The Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Baltimore Bullets 110-106 to begin their NBA-record 33-game winning streak. The Lakers' streak has never been broken and the Lakers wouldn't lose again until January 9, 1972 at Milwaukee.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Fantasy Five-Pack Friday: Nov. 4

It's Friday so today are five burning questions in my head going into the weekend....

-Why do No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama need to play now? This is a matchup that needs to wait until the BCS title game or better yet, maybe a playoff. This should be a great game one way or another, I'll have a prediction for you Saturday morning but if you love college football...this is your game.
- Is it possible we might see a 3-0 NFL game this week? Yes this may just happen with the Cardinals and Rams playing. Both could have backup QBs playing and both have had issues scoring. If this is the game in your area, take a nap instead.
- Will there be a fight in the Ravens-Steelers game Sunday night? Those two teams hate one another and the Steelers are still angry from the beatdown they got from Baltimore in Week 1. Things may get ugly.
- Is any NHL goalie worth $7 million? I guess Nashville's Pekka Rinne is since the Predators just gave him that much for the next seven years. Unless your name is Patrick Roy or Jacques Plante, I don't think so.
- Will the NBA lockout ever end? Sorry kids, we won't see Kobe or D-Rose or anyone else until at least mid-January. This is getting worse each day and have no signs of changing. Better learn to enjoy hockey or college basketball.
- Bonus 6 Thought and Question to the Audience: You got one game to win, who is your coach? Fire away a comment with your answer

Fantasy Player of the Day: Winnipeg G Ondrej Pavelec
Pavelec, who had a 3-4-1 record coming into Thursday's action, made 34 saves for the Jets in shutting out the Islanders 3-0 on the road.

Matchup to Watch: Colorado at Dallas, 7:30 p.m. (CT)
The Avalanche and Stars have combined for a 15-8 record so far this season. Gives you something to watch before Saturday's full slate of college football

This Date in History: Nov. 4, 1994
Chicago's United Center opens, officially closing the Madhouse on Madison at Chicago Stadium. The Bulls beat Charlotte 89-83. The Bulls finished 47-35 that season and some guy named Jordan showed up to play for the team late in the year.